Analysis of The Deserted Plantation
Paul Laurence Dunbar 1872 (Dayton) – 1906
OH, de grubbin'-hoe's a-rustin' in de co'nah,
An' de plow's a-tumblin' down in de fiel',
While de whippo'will's a-wailin' lak a mou'nah
When his stubbo'n hea't is tryin' ha'd to yiel'.
In de furrers whah de co'n was allus wavin',
Now de weeds is growin' green an' rank an' tall;
An' de swallers roun' de whole place is a-bravin'
Lak dey thought deir folks had allus owned it all.
An' de big house stan's all quiet lak an' solemn,
Not a blessed soul in pa'lor, po'ch, er lawn;
Not a guest, ner not a ca'iage lef' to haul 'em,
Fu' de ones dat tu'ned de latch-string out air gone.
An' de banjo's voice is silent in de qua'ters,
D' ain't a hymn ner co'n-song ringin' in de air;
But de murmur of a branch's passin' waters
Is de only soun' dat breks de stillness dere.
Whah's de da'kies, dem dat used to be a-dancin'
Evry night befo' de ole cabin do'?
Whah's de chillun, dem dat used to be a-prancin'
Er a-rollin' in de san' er on de flo'?
Whah's ole Uncle Mordecai an' Uncle Aaron?
Whah's Aunt Doshy, Sam, an' Kit, an' all de res'?
Whah's ole Tom de da'ky fiddlah, how's he farin'?
Whah's de gals dat used to sing an' dance de bes'?
Gone! not one o' dem is lef' to tell de story;
Dey have lef de deah ole place to fall away.
Couldn't one o' dem dat seed it in its glory
Stay to watch it in de hour of decay?
Dey have lef' de ole plantation to de swallers,
But it hol's in me a lover till de las';
Fu' I fin' hyeah in de memory dat follers
All dat loved me an' dat I loved in de pas'.
So I'll stay an' watch de deah ole place an' tend it
Ez I used to in de happy days gone by.
'Twell de othah Mastah thinks it's time to end it,
An' calls me to my qua'ters in de sky.
Scheme | ABABACACDEFEGHGHAIAJKGAGLMLMGGGGNONO |
---|---|
Poetic Form | |
Metre | 11110100111 1110101011 11101101 111111111 0111111111 1111111111 1111111101 1111111111 111111101110 1011011101 10111011111 111111111111 1111110011 110111111011 11101010110 11101111101 11111111101 11111101 1111111101 00100110111 11101011010 1111111111 111111111 11111111111 111111111110 11111111101 101111110110 11110110101 1111110111 11101010111 11110110011 11111111011 111111111111 11110110111 1111111111 111111011 |
Closest metre | Iambic hexameter |
Characters | 1,633 |
Words | 338 |
Sentences | 17 |
Stanzas | 1 |
Stanza Lengths | 36 |
Lines Amount | 36 |
Letters per line (avg) | 33 |
Words per line (avg) | 9 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 1,190 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 336 |
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Submitted on May 13, 2011
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 1:52 min read
- 66 Views
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"The Deserted Plantation" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 6 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/28892/the-deserted-plantation>.
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